Bernie Sanders Is Right | The American Spectator

Bernie Sanders is right.

As a practicing free-market conservative, I agree with U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on little more than the number of fingers on an average hand. Nonetheless, the Vermont Socialist’s comments on the assassination of Charlie Kirk are the very model of how Democrats — and all Americans — should address this carnage.

Far too many Democrat-Leftists have applauded last week’s murder of the 31-year-old conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA. Others have twisted their brains like saltwater taffy to blame Kirk’s death on his hero, Donald J. Trump. The president’s rhetoric supposedly is so hateful that it whipped Kirk’s “pro-Trump” killer into a homicidal frenzy.

An account with 5 million followers on X posts a fake photo of suspect Tyler Robinson wearing a Trump shirt and quietly follows up in a thread with the real photo.

The fake photo (which hasn’t been deleted) gets 400k impressions in an hour, and the real one gets 50k.

There… pic.twitter.com/wbckhT0Rqw

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) September 12, 2025

Trump-haters tried desperately to accuse alleged assassin Tyler Robinson of being so mega-MAGA that he shot Kirk for not being conservative enough. (As Bonchie noted on X: “Nothing says right-wing coded like anti-fascist ideology and having a trans-furry boyfriend.”) Digital scoundrels concocted deep fakes that deceptively transformed Robinson’s plain, burgundy T-shirt into a phony piece of pro-Trump campaign attire. (RELATED:  It’s Charlie Kirk’s America Now)

Most chilling of all, still others have infected social media with widely circulated and rapidly growing suggestions on whom Left-wing assassins should murder next. These hit lists include prominent conservatives Dennis Prager, Ben Shapiro, and Matt Walsh. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is another recommended target. She is a confirmed liberal who believes — sit down before reading further — there are only two sexes: Male and female.

Senator Sanders perpetrated none of this.

On September 11, the day after Kirk was gunned down at Utah Valley University in Orem, Sanders released a video statement and transcript. (RELATED: Charlie Kirk Is a Casualty of the Cultural Counterrevolution)

Sitting at a desk and looking straight into a camera, Sanders spoke calmly and firmly in a measured tone. He began by observing that he and Kirk differed, but then praised his skills and empathized with his survivors.

“Charlie Kirk,” Sanders said, was “someone whom I strongly disagreed with on almost every issue but who was clearly a very smart and effective communicator and organizer — and someone unafraid to get out into the world and engage the public. My condolences go out to his wife and his family.”

From these personal words of comfort, Sanders broadened his appeal and defended several core American principles.

“A free and democratic society,” Sanders argued, “depends upon the basic premise that people can speak out, organize, and take part in public life without fear — without worrying that they might be killed, injured, or humiliated for expressing their political views.” He added: “I want as many people as possible to participate in that process without fear.”

Sanders then said what one might have expected to hear universally since last Wednesday at 12:23 p.m. Mountain Time — when that single rifle round fatally pierced Kirk’s neck, as he answered students’ questions at a Prove Me Wrong forum. Alas, as has become horrifyingly clear, too many on the Left do not share Sanders’ opinion: “Every American, no matter what one’s political point of view may be, must condemn all forms of political violence and all forms of intimidation.” (RELATED: Charlie Kirk: The Last Debater)

Sanders chronicled “a disturbing rise in political violence” and cited cases that “targeted public figures across the political spectrum.” These included “the January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol,” “the attempted assassination of Donald Trump,” “the attack on Paul Pelosi,” “the murder of Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman and her husband,” “the arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro,” “the shooting of UnitedHealth executive Brian Thompson and the shooting several years ago of Rep. Steve Scalise…”

Sanders concluded with simple, powerful words: “If we honestly believe in democracy, if we believe in freedom, all of us must be loud and clear. Political violence, regardless of ideology, is not the answer and must be condemned.”

Before they dig their holes any deeper, Democrats should scrap whatever else they plan to say and simply echo the wise and perfectly appropriate message of none other than Bernie Sanders.

READ MORE from Deroy Murdock:

Charlie Kirk: 1993–2025

SCOTUS: Preserve Gay Marriage but Protect Religious Rights

Highest 2 Lowest Spotlights Ups and Downs of Black Experience

​Deroy Murdock is a Manhattan-based Fox News Contributor.